Category: Automation Impact on Jobs

It’s the one thing Trump and Clinton agree on – and it’s probably a fantasy

It’s the one thing Trump and Clinton agree on – and it’s probably a fantasy

On Sept. 8, 2010, General Motors workers cheer as the first Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan off the assembly line, at the GM factory in Lordstown, Ohio. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta) If there’s one thing Americans agree on, it’s collective nostalgia for the days when workers actually made things — when American factory workers earned good wages helping to crank out cars, refrigerators, furniture and other goods for consumers in the U.S. and around the world. So it’s no surprise that politicians are also united in pledging to bring those manufacturing jobs back to America, as both Donald Trump and Hillary […]

We’re witnessing the third industrial revolution playing out in real time

We're witnessing the third industrial revolution playing out in real time

Where did all the jobs go, and who will bring them back? (Photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images) When I pitched this post, I planned to write about the future of jobs — as in, what are young people going to do when computers and robots take over all the work? What are the people whose jobs have been automated out of existence going to do? I was finishing Martin Ford’s "The Rise of the Robots," in which he suggests there won’t be many jobs, and that instead we’ll need a guaranteed annual basic income for citizens because there won’t be […]

Slow-Motion Automation

Slow-Motion Automation

Illustration by Richard Mia Automation — in the form of machine learning, robotics, autonomous vehicles, white-collar bots, exoskeletons, and so on — is changing the nature of work in a wide range of industries. In conducting research for my new book, Silicon Collar: An Optimistic Perspective on Humans, Machines, and Jobs (Deal Architect, 2016), I examined people at work in more than 50 settings: accounting firms and banks, the battlefront and digital agencies, the oil patch and restaurants, R&D labs and shop floors, warehouses and wineries. And it is clear that the old divisions among professions and trades have […]

Elon Musk: “There’s a Pretty Good Chance We’ll End Up With Universal Basic Income”

Elon Musk: “There’s a Pretty Good Chance We’ll End Up With Universal Basic Income”

Universal and basic

Elon Musk just joined a number of other financial experts who are suggesting that universal basic income (UBI) may be the solution to the looming problem of unemployment, which stands to arise due to the large-scale automation of jobs as a result of artificial intelligence (AI) .

Although there are a number of ways that the system could work, in short, UBI is a system where the government (or another public entity) gives each citizen a fixed income, regardless of employment status.The idea of UBI has been around for awhile now. President Barack Obama himself even briefly […]

Elon Musk: We Need Universal Income Because Robots Will Steal All The Jobs

Elon Musk: We Need Universal Income Because Robots Will Steal All The Jobs

Image: Getty Spacentrepreneur Elon Musk thinks we’ll eventually need a basic universal income because of "automation."

"People will have time to do other things, more complex things, more interesting things," he told CNBC . "Certainly more leisure time. And then we gotta figure how we integrate with a world and future with a vast AI."

"Ultimately, I think there has to be some improved symbiosis with digital super intelligence," the Tesla CEO said.What will happen if robots steal our jobs? It’s a question that’s been on the minds of both the proletariat and the bourgeoisie since the advent of artificial intelligence. […]

Robots, not trade, behind many factory-job losses

Robots, not trade, behind many factory-job losses

A worker loads spools of thread at the Repreve Bottle Processing Center, part of the Unifi textile company in Yadkinville, North Carolina. WASHINGTON — Donald Trump blames Mexico and China for stealing millions of jobs from the United States.

He might want to bash the robots instead.

Despite the Republican presidential nominee’s charge "we don’t make anything anymore," manufacturing still is flourishing in America.Problem is, factories don’t need as many people as they used to because machines now do so much of the work.America has lost more than 7 million factory jobs since manufacturing employment peaked in 1979. Susan Stacy moves […]

The Skills Delusion

The Skills Delusion

Adair Turner Everybody agrees that better education and improved skills, for as many people as possible, is crucial to increasing productivity and living standards and to tackling rising inequality. But what if everybody is wrong?

Most economists are certain that human capital is as important to productivity growth as physical capital. And to some degree, that’s obviously true. Modern economies would not be possible without widespread literacy and numeracy: many emerging economies are held back by inadequate skills.

But one striking feature of the modern economy is how few skilled people are needed to drive crucial areas of economic activity. Facebook […]

Blame put on robots for job losses

Blame put on robots for job losses

A worker loads spools of thread at the automated Repreve yarn-making plant in Yadkinville, N.C., which is part of the Unifi textile company. Drone carts at the plant now do jobs that people once did. WASHINGTON — Donald Trump blames Mexico and China for stealing millions of jobs from the United States.

He might want to bash the robots instead.

Despite the Republican presidential nominee’s claim that "we don’t make anything anymore," manufacturing is still flourishing in America. Problem is, factories don’t need as many people as they used to because machines now do so much of the work.America has lost […]

“Resisting automation seems both futile and undesirable”

“Resisting automation seems both futile and undesirable”

John Danaher JAXenter: In the abstract of your session , you mention some recently-published books which forecast widespread technological unemployment over the next 50 years. What’s your take on that? Do you agree with the authors?

John Danaher: I am wary of making bold predictions but I think these authors are on the right track. There are going to be profound changes in both the volume and quantity of paid employment over the next 50 years. Indeed, some of these changes are already taking place.

JAXenter: If the threat to paid employment is real, what should our plan […]

Elon Musk: We Need Universal Income Because Robots Will Steal All the Jobs

Elon Musk: We Need Universal Income Because Robots Will Steal All the Jobs

Images: Getty Spacentrepreneur Elon Musk thinks we’ll eventually need a basic universal income because of “automation.”

Advertisement

“People will have time to do other things, more complex things, more interesting things,” he told CNBC . “Certainly more leisure time. And then we gotta figure how we integrate with a world and future with a vast AI.”“Ultimately, I think there has to be some improved symbiosis with digital super intelligence,” the Tesla CEO said. 0:00 / 0:00 What will happen if robots steal our jobs? It’s a question that’s been on the minds of both the proletariat and the bourgeoisie since the […]